Budae Jjigae 부대찌개 (Army Stew)

The other day we made a unique Korean stew incorporating the best of Korean and American staples: kimchi (spicy fermented cabbage), rice cakes, Spam, and hot dogs. Yes, you heard me right, Spam and hot dogs are cooked alongside a healthy dose of kimchi and other “stuff” that make up a hearty dish called budae jjigae, famously known as Army Stew in Korean. This is a popular dish that conjures up memories of Korea’s distant past when the country was devastated by war and food remained a scarce commodity. Shortly after the war, there was a surplus of foods like canned ham, Spam, and hot dog varieties from the US Army bases, so a few food stalls put them to good use by making them into a spicy soup flavored with gochujang (red chili pepper paste) and gochugaru (red chili flakes). McDonalds and Burger King are common fast food fixtures for the young today in Korea, but budae jjigae has remained a nostalgic and sentimental dish favored by older generations. This soup has also attracted foreigners in recent time.

We made this dish specifically for our food blog, so it was fun scouring and purging the fridge and pantry for needed ingredients. For the more traditional stew, you will probably want to stick to Spam, hot dogs, kimchi, rice cakes (tteok), ramen noodles, and cheese. But as long as there’s canned ham or Spam along with kimchi in a spicy broth, you can be sure to say that you’ve eaten Korean-style Army Soup (or least a variation of it).

Here are the ingredients for our budae jjigae (spicy army stew) with the minced garlic, sugar, and soy sauce not pictured.

Cut up your American ingredients, here we have regular smoked bacon (no Spam on this day) and a few hot dogs.

After boiling 2 cups of kimchi and some of its juice in the pot for about 10 minutes, add the bacon and hot dogs.

Next, add the rice cakes and the ramen noodles to the mix. Boil for another 10 minutes or until the noodles separate and soften.

The noodles will separate slowly on its own, telling you that the soup is just about done.

Garnish with scallion or the like and enjoy this unique Korean-American stew.

Servings: 4 people

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 can Spam, cut according to preference

3, 4 hot dogs

4, 5 strips bacon

1 cup kimchi (+ 1/2 cup kimchi liquid)

1 instant ramen noodle (sauce packet optional)

1 cup rice cakes (tteok)

1/2 onion, thinly diced

2 tbsp gochujang (red pepper paste)

1 tbsp gochugaru (red pepper flake)

4 garlic cloves, finely minced

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp brown sugar

5, 6 cups water

1 package firm tofu (optional)

1 scallion/green onion, thinly sliced (garnish)

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot to a boil (about 6 cups of water) and place kimchi and sauce ingredients (gochujang, gochugaru, minced garlic, soy sauce, sugar, and diced onion). Boil for about 10 minutes to soften the kimchi and enrich the broth.

2. Meanwhile, prepare the meats by cutting them into desired pieces. Add the pre-cut bacon and hot dog (Spam if available) and cook for another 10 minutes. Follow that with the instant ramen noodles and wait until noodles separate on their own.

3. When noodles have separated, taste the broth of the stew and regulate according to taste preference. This might be too spicy for some so reducing the red pepper paste and flakes or adding extra water will help alleviate this problem.

4. Serve immediately before noodles soften and set at the center of the table where everyone can help themselves, or plate individually into separate bowls. Eat with rice and banchan side dishes.

*Many Koreans will also include some of the spicy sauce packet from the instant noodles (Shin Ramen being the most ideal) that can surprisingly add more depth and flavor to the stew. If time permits, cook the soup longer to develop more tense flavors, as most Korean soups and stews taste exponentially better when cooked for longer periods.